Ligue 1 has "fallen back into financial struggles," according to Guillaume Errard of LE FIGARO. After having cut in half its losses between the '09-10 and '10-11 seasons (from €114M to €46M), France's elite teams lost €60M ($78.2M) in '11-12. If Ligue 2 clubs are included, the losses reach €108M ($140.8M). The data was presented by the DNCG, the organization responsible for overseeing and monitoring the accounts of professional football clubs in France. The data shows seven-time Ligue 1 champions Lyon is in the worst financial position with losses of €28M ($36.5M), followed by Ligue 2's AJ Auxerre (€16.4M/$21.4M) and Marseille (€8.2M/$10.7M). Paris St. Germain "was able to limit its losses" to €5.5M ($7.2M). The figure takes into account "the famous contract" worth more than €100M ($130.4M) with the Qatar Tourism Authority. The club in the best financial predicament is Lille, which shows a profit of €3.8M ($5M). The other clubs to make money "only showed benefits in the hundreds of thousands of euros." The French Professional Football League (LFP) reminded us that the losses from French clubs remain "reasonable" compared to neighbors Spain and England (LE FIGARO, 3/5). The report, breaking down each club's finances, from the DNCG, in French (LFP).

The Shanghai-based National Business Daily reported that "burdened by its high inventories in China, Nike is going to target second- and third-tier cities in its plans to open 40-50 outlets in the country, according to WANT CHINA TIMES. As part of the sportswear giant's plan, these new outlets, each with an area of more than 500 square meters, "will be in charge of selling the company's unsold goods at discounts of 60-70%." This campaign "poses a great threat to Nike's Chinese competitors, which have been staying afloat by offering discounts." The company's policy to venture into second- and third-tier Chinese cities "will also deal a hard blow to Chinese sportswear companies, which consider these cities their stronghold." Chinese sportswear companies "are not a match for their foreign counterparts, with the daily revenues of their outlets typically being about one-tenth" of Nike or adidas (WANT CHINA TIMES, 3/5).